ALTOONA, Iowa — Iowa State University Extension and Outreach and the Iowa USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) have scheduled an Advanced RUSLE2 workshop for Sept.26 at the Polk County Extension Office in Altoona, Iowa. The workshop starts at 8 a.m. at 1625 Adventureland Drive.

ALTOONA, Iowa — Iowa State University Extension and Outreach and the Iowa USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) have scheduled an Advanced RUSLE2 workshop for Sept.26 at the Polk County Extension Office in Altoona, Iowa. The workshop starts at 8 a.m. at 1625 Adventureland Drive.

This advanced workshop will enable participants to explore implementation of practice based changes designed to reduce erosion. Workshop instructors are Barb Stewart, USDA - NRCS, and Kapil Arora and Angela Rieck-Hinz, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach specialists. They will focus on RUSLE2 principles, conservation practices both in RUSLE2 and Iowa Phosphorus Index, dominant critical area determinations, and setting up different managements in RUSLE2.

They will place a special emphasis on combination tillage tools, strip cropping, use of cover crops and terraced fields. There will be time during the workshop to explore the use of different template options in the software for use in watershed planning and the use of shortcut keys.

Registration is currently open only to those who have previously attended the Introductory RUSLE2 and Iowa Phosphorus Index workshop. Registration is required, there will be no walk-ins allowed. Registration cost is $200 prior to Sept. 23; $225 after Sept. 23. The workshop is limited to 30 people.

Participants are required to bring a laptop computer pre-loaded with the most current version of the RUSLE2 and Iowa P-Index software. A total of six credits have been applied for in the Certified Crop Adviser Program and three professional development hours will be available for engineers. Workshop registration and agenda, workshop requirements and driving directions are available online. For more information or a print version of the registration go to http://www.extension.iastate.edu/registration/events/conferences/rusle2/.

Contact Kapil Arora at (515) 382-6551, or pbtiger@iastate.edu; or Angie Rieck-Hinz at (515) 294-9590, or amrieck@iastate.edu to have questions about the workshop answered.